Haiti's Multinational Police Mission Denies Reports of Unpaid Salaries | Conflict news

The Kenyan-led force has hit back after the report said nearly 20 personnel had left the force due to unpaid salaries.

A Supported by the UN the Kenyan-led security mission in Haiti has denied reports that some of its staff have gone months without pay.

In a statement on Friday, the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti (MSS) said it “strongly refutes” reports that employees have not received their salaries for three months.

“All MSS staff have received their salaries, including monthly allowances, and no MSS employee has resigned as alleged,” the statement said.

“MSS officers remain highly motivated and fully committed to supporting the Haitian National Police (HNP) in conducting decisive operations aimed at disrupting gangster networks and restoring stability.”

The claims of unpaid wages come as MSS struggles to make an impact on conditions in Haiti, where armed gangs have been unleashing wave of violencewreaking havoc on civilian life and destabilizing the country.

The UN estimates that 85 percent of the capital of Port-au-Prince has fallen under the control of gangs. More than 700,000 people have been displaced across Haiti as a result of the violence.

Reuters news agency reported in an exclusive story on Friday that nearly 20 Kenyan officers had resigned from the MSS over delayed pay and poor working conditions, citing three sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

In its statement, the MSS said Reuters had not contacted the mission for comment before publication, but a spokesman for the news agency said Reuters was behind the story.

The mission, already seriously studied due to the bad track record of foreign interference in Haiti, has made little progress since arriving in the Caribbean island nation in June.

Financing difficulties existed from the start. Although originally conceived as a police mission with a staff of 2,500 officers, Kenya has sent only about 400 employees since June.

Questions have also been raised about the stability of funding from the United States, the main financial backer of the mission.

Although US President Joe Biden's administration is encouraging the Kenyan-led effort, it is unclear whether that support will continue in 2025, when Biden is replaced by President-elect Donald Trump.

In response to the lack of funding, officials from the US and elsewhere pushed for the UN to launch a peacekeeping mission in Haiti.

But a previous UN peacekeeping mission in the country ended in 2017. amid backlash over her role in reintroducing cholera to the country and accusations of sexual abuse.

Security in Haiti has deteriorated since the assassination of former president Jovenel Moise in 2021. But even with the presence of Kenyan forces, violence between the groups continues to rise and the country continues to struggle to establish stable governance.

Haiti hasn't held federal elections in years, a fact the gangs have taken advantage of to claim legitimacy.

Also last month, a transitional council tasked with restoring democracy in Haiti fired interim Prime Minister Gary Connell after just six months in office. The move raised further questions about corruption in the transitional government — and the future of Haiti's leadership.